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The Characteristics Of The Works Of Ovid And The Golden Age

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Golden Age

The Golden Age is also referred to as the Augustan Age. This period was characterized by the absence of contemporary practices with emphasis on greed and war and not by positive traits (Galinsky, 1996). It can be seen from the works of Ovid and other golden age authors that the definition of the golden age and its attitudes were not similar. Tacitus described the golden age with stress on ‘golden’ to represent any subsequent age and the association of contentment (Galinsky, 1996). Seneca, on the other hand, described the golden age of the materialistic preoccupation with gold and wealth (Galinsky, 1996).

During this period, one of the distinguished poets included Virgil. Virgil’s famous works involved praises towards Augustus rule as emperor. Aeneid, which is considered the poets best links Greece and Rome …show more content…

This mockery was evidenced in Amores, which included love poems (Spielvogel, 2011). Ovid refuses to praise the past glad to be part of his generation but selectively praises his civilization (Galinsky, 1996). This is because though the technological state of Rome is satisfactory and gold is available for mining but does not matter as much as refinement and culture. Whereas most didactic poets would include details on hunting or farming, Ovid’s works would be instructive on seducing women such as in The Art of Love (Spielvogel, 2011).

Livy’s History of Rome was the most significant work of the golden age. A historian who focused more on the story than accuracy, Livy noted the inception of the city from the 9 B.C. (Spielvogel, 2011). Most of Livy’s works were lost, but summaries are found in other literary works. Livy had a view of history as moral lessons with the human character as the determinant (Spielvogel, 2011). In his works, Livy glorified Rome describing critical figures in history and the virtues that made Rome great (Spielvogel, 2011).

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